With billions of images and videos in circulation every day, the use of imagery will remain an important source of information for researchers and investigators. Keeping abreast of technological advancements and tools will remain a high priority for online professionals in the law enforcement, private security and intelligence industries.

Keeping track of technological advancements related to imagery remains a high priority for online professionals in the law enforcement, private security and intelligence industries. There are no reliable numbers for just how many images and videos there are online, but rough estimates from a variety of sources point towards over two trillion images and five hundred billion videos. That’s a lot of imagery, and a lot of potential information and evidence for researchers and investigators.

Another reason for this level of interest is the continued high level of public awareness regarding how images can be detrimental to claims and court cases. Over the last few years this has resulted in personal photos becoming scarcer to come by as many people increase their privacy settings and block access to those particular photos that interest researchers and investigators. This in turn makes it even more important to glean every scrap of information from the limited materials being found online during research, analysis and investigations.